RetroIndy: The Scottish Rite Cathedral

On Sept. 20, 1929, Freemasons from across the northern United States gathered Downtown in Indianapolis for the grand opening of the just-completed Scottish Rite Cathedral, which had cost more than $3 million and taken two years to build. Dedication ceremonies were held Sept 10, 1929.

Located at 650 N. Meridian Street, it occupies a city block between North and Walnut streets on the west side of Meridian. It was designed by architect George T. Schreiber who modeled it after the great Gothic cathedrals of Europe.

Despite its name and appearance, however, it is not a church and has never been one. It's a Masonic meeting hall intended for the ceremonies and rituals of Freemasonry, though nowadays it is also used as a venue for weddings, theatrical performances and other non-Masonic events.

The cathedral's central tower is 212 feet high and contains a 54-bell carillon which is still played manually by a "carillonneur." Unlike the traditional church bell, the bells inside a carillon do not swing. Instead, they are struck with iron clappers attached to the musician's console, called a clavier.

About 170 of the instruments are scattered in church towers and on college campusesacross the country.

Masons trace their lineage to the guild organizations of the stoneworkers who built the cathedrals of Europe, and over the centuries they evolved into fraternal organization supporting various charities. However, their penchant for elaborate, secret ritual has long attracted the suspicions of conspiracy theorists -- and they have become handy villains for novels and movies of intrigue. Schreiber was himself a Mason and built into the cathedral a cornucopia of Masonic symbols down to its dimensions, many of which are multiples of the number 33, the highest level a Mason can reach.